


Lights

by miasnape



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Carnival, Community: 3daychallenge, Fairground, Ferris Wheels, Fluff, M/M, Pre-Slash, Stuffed Toys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-03
Updated: 2012-03-03
Packaged: 2017-11-01 00:57:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/350218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/miasnape/pseuds/miasnape
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rodney and John at the fairground!</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lights

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Carnivals Challenge at 3daychallenge.

Strings of lights blurred all around him, random combinations of red-yellow-green-blue-yellow-blue-red burning into the dusk. Strains of Bruce Springsteen could be heard under the voices talking and calling out and shrieking with laughter. The clack-clack-clack of the roller-coaster cars on the tracks sped suddenly as the train rounded the topmost bend and rushed downwards, accompanied by the endorphin-laced screams of its passengers.

John collected his food and change from the hot-dog vendor and weaved past the crowds to where Rodney had staked out a long, wooden picnic bench. Setting the hot-dogs and cheesy fries down beside Rodney's half-finished popcorn, two large soft-drinks, and the stuffed menagerie of prizes from the game stalls, John surveyed their position. Out of the main fairground, in a darkened grassy spot between the hall of mirrors and the snack stalls, they were bathed in a dusty yellow light and surrounded by the scents of sugar, motor-oil and freshly-dug earth.

John swung one leg over the bench and sat down facing the crowds and lights and tents, enjoying the strange sense of being invisible to everyone except Rodney. Rodney, who was making obscene noises and faces while biting into his hot-dog. John grinned and swirled a french-fry in the cheese mixture.

"This stuff'll give us both heart-attacks before we're fifty, you know," John said, watching the string of fake cheese dangling from his fry with childlike glee before shoving it all into his mouth and chewing happily.

Rodney finished chewing his mouthful and swallowed. "I'm not thinking about what it's all made of, I'm just going to enjoy how it tastes. There are some things in life that, I swear, they just taste better under certain circumstances."

John bit into his own hot-dog, his mouth instantly watering at the fried onion, ketchupy, mustardy goodness, and moaned in agreement. "God, this is good," he mumbled, chewing and savouring.

He glanced at the table-top, gaze moving over the vast range of cuddly toys that Rodney had somehow managed to acquire. Fair enough, three of them were his wins, but the majority of them were proof that weapons training and physics genius were a deadly combination.

"Are you going to try to get rid of them before we hit the Mountain, or are you going to make us risk ridicule by fobbing them off on Stargate personnel?"

Rodney smiled, just a little lopsided, eyes reflecting blue-green-blue. "I was thinking of giving them all to Carter, just to see her squirm. What d'you think?"

John rolled his eyes and dug another fry out of the pile. "That little obsession's still holding on tight, then."

Rodney threw a piece of popcorn at him, hitting him right in the middle of the forehead. John just grinned, plucked it off his lap and tossed it into his mouth, the sweetness bursting over his tastebuds. Truth was that these days Rodney didn't seem to want Sam Carter in a sexual way; it was more that he wanted validation from her that he was a good scientist and a good person. John tended to ignore his relief at that.

Rodney picked up his drink and looked out over the fairground, eyes stopping on the ferris wheel. "My first kiss was at a carnival, you know," Rodney said, his voice far away and soft. "I was twelve. She was called April. They had a ring-toss thing that was ridiculously easy to beat. They gave me the biggest toy they had just to get me to stop winning: this giant monstrosity of a purple teddy bear. I gave it to her and she let me kiss her at the top of the ferris wheel."

After a few seconds Rodney turned back to his drink a took a sip. "Of course a week later I was in bed with mono, but still."

John laughed, and when Rodney looked at him, he laughed too, easy and free, and John was really glad he'd seen that article in the local paper and pestered Rodney to come with him tonight.

He looked at the three toys he'd won and smiled. One of them was a plush, blue, black-eyed whale, the length of his forearm and the width of his palm, and he'd won it throwing darts at balloons. He made sure to wipe any grease off his fingers before he picked it up and examined it.

"You can't give Carter this one," he said, rubbing his thumb back and forth over the snubbed nose, "and you can't call it Sam, either."

Rodney blinked at him. "Why would I name it?" he asked, clearly bewildered. "It's yours."

John flicked his eyebrows up and smirked, even though he knew it looked more than faintly ridiculous. "Nah," he said, setting it firmly down in front of Rodney. "It's a stuffed flagisalis. It's yours."

Rodney stared at it for ten seconds before touching it, his strong fingers curving over the middle and rubbing against the smooth fur. He looked up at John, searching his face. John forced himself not to build his usual walls, even though he knew it was all right there to see; the fondness, the amusement, the contentment, the desire.

After a long moment, Rodney looked back down at the toy, his fingertips still riffling through the material. When he looked up again, his eyes reflected red-blue-red and his mouth was quirked up on the left.

"Want to go on the ferris wheel after we've eaten?" he asked, failing completely at sounding anything near nonchalant and casual, and John ducked his head to hide the goofy grin. He picked up his hot-dog and took another bite and let the noise and the lights and the taste and the carnival mood wash over him.

"Sure. Sounds like a plan."

END


End file.
